Financial Literacy
Financial missteps that could ruin your marriage
Financial missteps that could ruin your marriage
If you’re few steps to tying the knot this info is timely for you. If on the other hand your marriage is a done ‘signed and sealed’ deal, you might still be in time to save your home. love is ideal for a home but for a long-lasting relationship between man and wife, all your ‘money-matters’ need to be handled upfront and delicately at that. people tend to overlook the impact that money has over their lives until a few years down the line (if that) when they are arguing about who to pay which bills and who not to. Financial missteps could be disastrous for your marriage and should be avoided at all cost.
A few such missteps include;
Being secretive about money
Most marriages suffer because of lack of communication. Spouses treat themselves as strangers when it comes to money. I can’t say I really blame them; with the increasing rate of separation and divorces in the country, people would much rather keep their little ‘secret stash’ for rainy days.
The truth is that to avoid drowning yourselves in deep waters, you need to be open about money. Talk about your income, your debts, your credits, your spending habits; put everything out in the open. Although it’s better to have this talk before marriage, it’s not late to do so now.
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Turning a blind eye to money problems
Its funny how one spouse would find out about a financial problem (most likely an unpaid bill) and turn a blind eye to it waiting expectantly for the partner to handle it. This also boils down to communication. Don’t put things off when they are related to money. Tackle issues sooner before they become even more complicating. The best way to resolve this is to try and split responsibilities up. Do so openly without assumptions. Your husband might be assuming that you’ll pay the PHCN bill this month and you on your part, might be thinking that he already paid the bill. This is why you need both communication and clarity.
Having zero- savings and no financial goals
As a couple, you need to sit down and plan for your future together. You took a together-forever oath so you don’t expect to just take it one day at a time. Forever is a long time to leave without solid plans. A lot of marriages fail as a result of this mistake. The husband and his wife have no plans for their future financially and when children with their added responsibilities enter the picture, the little money they have tends to diminish. Aside from your personal savings, it’s advisable to make savings as a family. Put some money aside every month.
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One-sided burden
Marriages where only one partner carries the financial burden of the family are most likely to crash sooner than letter. There should be support from the spouse. The couple should be able to split the burden in order for the family to make any head way financially. Marriage requires teamwork not just for reproduction, but for money too. When one person handles the finances of the family it is very easy for the other to misunderstand them. This brings about rebellion and inevitably dispute. On the other hand the spouse handling the finances could be harboring secret resentment towards their partner for not helping out. You don’t want to be a burden to your spouse so figure out a way to help them out.
Merging your accounts
In the spirit of love and to prove their trust in their spouse, some people make the mistake of forming a joint account. While it is a sweet gesture, it might be the fastest route to a divorce. What a lot of people forget is that ‘you are first an individual before you are a husband/wife’. As such, you have private needs and wants. If you must have a joint account, then do so but maintain your personal accounts as well. See the joint account as your family savings account. Before you do start a joint account though, both of you should sit and discuss the terms of operation of the said account.
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As you can clearly see, most of these problems are avoidable but due to ignorance some people walk right into them. Now that we’ve clearly pointed them out, do the needful and have that long avoided money talk with your spouse. It’s a start in the right direction so stop putting it off.
MSME
Just-in: N30,000 Survival Fund: First batch of beneficiaries are receiving grants — FG
The first batch of beneficiaries of the Federal Government’s N30,000 artisans grants have started receiving their grants.
Beneficiaries in the first batch of the Federal Government’s N30,000 artisans’ grant have started receiving their grants.
This was disclosed by the Presidency via the FG’s Twitter handle on Saturday.
It tweeted, “The first batch of beneficiaries of the N30,000 artisans grant, a component of @NigeriaGov’s @SurvivalFund_ng, have started receiving their grants.
“Eligible beneficiaries are artisans and self-employed individuals. Each State will have 9,000 beneficiaries.”
UPDATE: The first batch of beneficiaries of the N30,000 artisans grant, a component of @NigeriaGov’s @SurvivalFund_ng, have started receiving their grants. Eligible beneficiaries are artisans and self-employed individuals. Each State will have 9,000 beneficiaries.
— Presidency Nigeria (@NGRPresident) October 31, 2020
Details soon …
Personal Finance
How to avoid debt despite economic challenges
Analyzing your income and your needs will help you to develop a befitting spending strategy that covers your expenses.
With the current economic climate, running into debt seems unavoidable for many individuals and organizations. Individuals, as well as businesses, are faced with daunting economic challenges which the pandemic has triggered.
It is important to note that staying out of debt requires cultivating an effective financial management approach.
It involves taking proactive steps towards managing money and time to limit debt and reduce financial worries. With the change in the economy, if sound and diligent financial efforts are placed in motion, it is possible to prevent accumulating debts.
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Here are some ways to limit debt amid the present economic challenges:
1. Set Spending Limits
- It is easy to run into debt if spending habits are not placed in check. The increasing use of technology in the business sphere has made goods and services readily available.
- This means that purchasing desirable goods and services has been made effortless which plays a major role in increasing spending.
- Thus, setting spending limits will give you knowledge of how to utilize your finances. It will help you to know what you can afford within the range of your income.
READ: IMF expects global GDP to shrink by 4.9% in 2020
2. Evaluate your Income and Expenses
- Having a sound knowledge of how much comes in and what it should be used for will enable you to spend your money wisely.
- Analyzing your income and your needs will help you to develop a befitting spending strategy that covers your expenses.
- Know the nature and demands of the expenses you make. When your needs are properly budgeted for, the chances of getting into debt to settle unplanned expenses will be limited.
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3. Contentment is Important
- If you want to limit debt, you need to decipher the important things your income should be spent on and stick to it.
- Being content helps you aim for necessities. It gives you an understanding of your needs and wants, thus limiting the way you spend on unnecessary yearnings or desires.
- With the present challenges, contentment is required to exercise control over your finances.
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4. Acquire Financial Knowledge
- Money management is a skill that needs to be sharpened to suit different economic climates.
- Financial literacy is required to make productive use of your finances. It is important to read books on finances or take courses on financial management.
- This habit will help to expand your knowledge on different concepts of money management which can be applied to your finances.
5. Be Realistic with Your Spending
- It is natural to desire things. The society is constantly portraying new products and services daily which give people the impression that they need to buy the latest products to stay in vogue.
- Many people go beyond their means to achieve this desire which eventually accrues unimaginable debts in the end.
- To avoid getting into debt, you need to be realistic with your spending. Analyze the essential things you need and check if you need to trim your budget to stay on track.
6. Get Extra Gigs
- If spending less is not keeping you out of debt, you need to try earning more to meet your needs. Additional income can meet more financial demands.
- Try to engage in activities that can earn you extra income. This will limit the tendency of accruing debts to foot your bills.
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7. Have a Saving Plan
- One of the ways to limit the chances of running into debt is to make provision for unexpected expenses.
- The present economic situation poses a challenge to individuals and businesses. Many occurrences take place unexpectedly.
- In as much as having a budget is important, some pressing needs arise outside the budget that might throw you off guard if allocations are not made for such occurrences. Allocate your income to cover your saving plan.
Limiting debts requires a lot of self-discipline. It involves recognizing and curtailing the habits that are capable of getting you into debt. This means cultivating the habits of intentional and planned spending, as well as improved earning power.
Personal Finance
Protecting your money from fraudsters
The ability to carry out transactions from the comfort of your homes, comes with the responsibility of safeguarding your money.
The advent of the cashless policy in Nigeria came as both a gift and a curse. On the plus side, one does not need to lug bags of cash around, especially for interstate transactions—just get depositors to transfer funds to your account, and you in turn, transfer to your business partners.
The policy has also made banks more innovative by creating various payment platforms that don’t need physical cash. Each bank has a robust mobile banking app where customers can transfer funds, subscribe for cable TV, book flights, buy airtime, etc., without entering a banking hall. For those without smart phones, the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) option is there. Even ATM cards have been upgraded to do more than pay cash. What a time to be alive!
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However, with these strides in innovation, come the downsides—robbers have adapted with the times by moving from the highway and taking their “trade” online. The various options open to customers for processing transactions can also be manipulated by thieves to defraud account holders of their hard-earned funds.
Hopefully, after reading this article, readers would be better armed to protect their funds from these “online robbers.”
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1. Do not divulge sensitive account details to unknown callers
As surprising as it seems, many people still fall prey to this trick, despite several warnings. There have been many instances of people admitting that they received calls from unknown callers, who claim to be staff of various banks. They are told that their accounts require some form of upgrade\corrections, and to do this, information like ATM card PINs and PANs, and details of messages sent to the account owners’ phones are needed. The “bank staff” then creates mobile banking apps tied to the bank accounts of the unsuspecting owners, and from there, all funds are transferred to several unknown recipients.
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2. Protect card details
As already stated, ATM cards are not just used for cash withdrawals now—they can also be used for funds transfers, bills payments, online transactions, etc. this means that one does not necessarily need the physical presence of their card to process some transactions. With knowledge of the card Primary Account Number (PAN), which are the 16 digits displayed on the card’s surface, the Personal Identification Number (PIN), and Card Verification Value (CVV) number, displayed on the back of the card, funds can be moved from one’s account.
It is therefore important to protect these details, especially when using the card in public places like ATM lobbies, and POS machines. You should be equally careful not to call out such details, if absolutely necessary, within earshot of people.
3. Always keep your phone safe
Imagine mourning the loss of your phone, then having the added heartache of losing the funds in your bank account(s).
The value of a phone goes beyond its price, these days. It contains private valued information of its owner, among which are bank account details; it also contains the SIM through which transaction alerts are received. The SIM makes it possible to process USSD transactions.
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There have been instances where phones were given to repairmen, only for the owners to realise later that funds had been transferred from their accounts via USSD to unknown beneficiaries. Even relatives have been known to secretly steal funds from accounts, just by handling the owner’s phones.
Always keep your phone locked, and know where it is at all times.
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4. Pay attention to transaction alerts
It is very easy to assume that all is well with one’s account, and not bother with checking transaction alerts. After all, it is what you withdrew that must have left the account, right? Wrong!
As explained above, funds could have left your account without your authorisation. So pay attention to your transaction alerts, especially the balances, and quickly investigate any transaction that was not initiated with your permission—the earlier the better, for quick resolution with your bank.
Also note that the absence of alerts despite transactions could also be a red flag, as the SIM could have been swapped, giving fraudsters a free hand to run your account.
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5. Know the USSD code for instant account deactivation
Imagine the horror of receiving alerts showing that your account is being continuously debited as you helplessly watch it happen, especially during over weekend when banks are closed.
This doesn’t need to happen. Right from the first debit, you should be able to take action and deactivate your account to prevent further debits. This is why it is important to know the emergency code of each bank where your funds are kept. For example, with Zenith Bank, any phone can be used to enter USSD code *966*911#, provide your account number, and the number used to receive alerts, and the account gets instantly deactivated. After this, you can take your time to investigate the stolen money, instead of frantically running around to stop further debits.
READ: Senate investigates Nigerian banks over ATM, SMS, and maintenance charges
It is also important to know the various ways to reach your bank during emergencies—get their customer care lines from their websites, and if they have chatbots, engage them; also know their email addresses. Getting your account officer’s number too is useful.
Conclusion
Apparently, with the ability to carry out transactions from the comfort of your homes, comes the responsibility of safeguarding your money (to an extent). These tips should make it easier to do so.
However, in a case where the money has already been stolen, contact your bank as soon as possible for investigation and possible recovery.
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